NSERC’s Awards Database
Award Details

Theoretical modelling of influenza viral infections

Research Details
Application Id: 355837-2008
Competition Year: 2008 Fiscal Year: 2008-2009
Project Lead Name: Beauchemin, Catherine Institution: Ryerson University
Department: Physics Province: Ontario
Award Amount: $24,070 Installment: 1 - 5
Program: Discovery Grants Program - Individual Selection Committee: Interdisciplinary
Research Subject: Mathematical biology and physiology Area of Application: Medical and health sciences
Co-Researchers: No Co-Researcher Partners: No Partners
Award Summary

Influenza (flu) is a growing concern for health authorities worldwide. The annual cost of flu illness and the threat of an imminent pandemic make it all the more necessary to better understand the mechanisms that drive this disease.

The objective of this research is to describe and understand how various factors can affect the spread of flu within an individual. This will be done by suggesting hypotheses in the form of mathematical and computer models and seeing how their behaviour compares to that of experimental systems. For example, fitting the models to experimental data will help determine key parameters of an influenza infection like viral production rate which would be difficult or impossible to obtain experimentally.

The research will concentrate on 3 particular aspects of the disease: (1) how anti-influenza drugs act on the various phases of virus reproduction and thus influence viral population growth; (2) how the variety of cell types in the lungs affects how fast the disease spreads in certain parts of the lungs compared to others; and (3) how the chemical signals (chemokines) released by the cells infected with or combating the flu infection are affecting how sick a patient will feel or how quickly she/he will recover.

Answers to these questions will help us get a better understanding of what drives this disease and how we can best combat it. Additionally, the models and approaches that will be used in this research should be applicable to other respiratory diseases such as SARS and the metapneumovirus.